Crowing A Queen: Determined Scholar

Deaweh Benson is a Sophomore Psychology/English major at Spelman College. When she first arrived on campus, she had no idea how she was going to afford four years at an institution that costs over $35,000 per year. She didn’t let that challenge cause her to give up. Deaweh chose to focus on what she could do to resolve the situation. She worked hard to continue her academic achievements and spent many hours completing scholarship and internship applications.

She stayed focused to achieving her goal of attending the college of her dreams. That hard work finally paid off; literally$$

Deaweh was recently named a finalist of the Executive Leadership Council’s National Essay Competition. She was selected as one of 10 college students across the country to receive this prestigious scholarship award. This opportunity allowed her to take part in weeklong Honors Symposiums held in New York City and Washington, DC with Council members and senior corporate executives at several Fortune 500 companies. She also received substantial financial assistance from Spelman College because she maintained good grades, showed leadership potential and was involved in extracurricular/community service activities.

When asked what advice she would give to teen girls, Deaweh says, “Never allow your socio-economic background, race, or gender to deter you from establishing goals and reaching them. Regardless of your circumstance, you have to be the one to believe in yourself first. If you don’t, then no one else will.”